Pole kicking apparatus



Feb. 6, 1951 T. G. ROGERS 2,540,993

POLE KICKING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 23, 1%49 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

1 72017768 G ffiyers BYVZAZ J b ATTORNEYS film Feb. 6, 1951 T. G. ROGERS POLE KI CKING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 25. 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

w/ m H 0 a Jr m w m mm W $2.6

Patented Feb. 6, 1951 2,540,993 POLE memo APPARATUS Thomas G. Rogers, Macon, Ga., assignor to Southern Wood Preserving Company, Atlanta, Ga., a corporation of Georgia Application February 23, 1949, Serial No. 77,911

2 Claims.

This invention relates to pole kicking apparatus and, among other objects, aims to provide improved power operated kicker mechanism for discharging or unloading poles from carriages or buggies and depositing them onvskids.

Another aim of the invention is to provide pneumatically operated kickers arranged in pairs adjacent to a roadway or track and having a single manually operable valve for controlling the operation of pairs of kicker arms simultaneously to discharge a pole loaded on spaced carriages.

Qther aims and advantages of the invention will appear in the specification, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings,

wherein:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view showing one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical elevation of one of the kickers;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a valve for the kickers shown in Fig. 1.

Referring more particularly to the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the kickers are designed to handle wood poles in a wood preserving plant where they are rossed or debarked before they are treated with creosote or other wood preservative. They are shown as being used to discharge a pole I from carriages or buggies l I and l 2 of the type shown in the patent to Taylor, No. 2,230,336. As shown in that patent, the rossed poles are deposited on the carriages or buggies when the rossing operation is completed and the carriages are mounted on a track l3 leading from the delivery end of the rossing machine to skids or ramps I4, where the kicked-off poles are stored, ready for delivery to the treating plant on a track l5 at the lower ends of the skids.

In this example, only one pair of spaced kickers is shown for discharging poles at one point on the skids. However, it will be understood that two or more pairs of such kickers may be employed along the length of the skidway to kickoff poles which are delivered from the machine, butt-first, at one point on the skids and those delivered from the machine tip-first, at another point on the skids. Also, it may be desirable to store poles of different sizes and lengths at different points on the skids to facilitate subsequent handling.

The preferred form of kicker unit is best illustrated in Fig. 2, wherein the mechanism is shown as being supported on an A-shaped frame embodying a pair of upright structural channel beams lb and a pair of brace beams ll anchored in the ground adjacent to the track IS. The upright beams are inclined at a slight angle to overhang the track at their upper ends. A kicker arm I 8 is suspended and pivoted between the upright beams on a pivot pin or bolt I9, as shown in Fig. 3, and this arm is adapted to swing forwardly in a vertical plane across the track I3 to kick a pole off the buggies onto the skids.

In this example, each kicker arm is operated by a motor comprising an air cylinder 2i] pivoted at its rear end by a pivot bolt 2| between the brace beams ll and carrying a piston-operated plunger or rod 22 pivotally connected to the arm l8 below its upper end. A suspension spring 23 is shown as being connected to the forward end portion of the cylinder 20 to relieve the piston rod of bending stresses due to the weight of the cylinder.

The reciprocating motors are preferably of the double-acting type to facilitate quick return of the kicker arms and to hold them in slightly inclined inactive position, as shown in Fig. 2. For that purpose, flexible air hoses 24 and 25 are connected to the opposite ends of each cylinder. The hoses are connected to a pair of air pipes 26 and 21, respectively leading to a four-way control valve 28 which may be located at the rossing machine, where it can be operated by the machine operator. An air supply pipe 29 leading from a source of compressed air, and an exhaust pipe 30, are both connected to the four-way valve, as best shown in Fig. 4.

The control valve 28 is operated by a handle 3| to admit air to one end of each cylinder and exhaust air from the other end to operate the kickers when the buggies have transported a pole to the unloading station or position shown in Fig. 1. The kicker arms are quickly returned to their inactive positions out of the path of the buggies, so that the buggies may be returned to the rossing machine to receive another pole. Of course, it is contemplated that the kicker motors may be single-acting, in which case the arms will return to vertical inactive positions by gravity.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the kickers are easily installed and effective in operation. Moreover, the remote control eliminates hazards to workmen. Also, the apparatus reduces the amount of manual labor to a minimum.

Obviously, the invention is not limited to the particular embodiment and use herein shown and described.

.What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for discharging rossed poles and the like from a pair of spaced wheeled carriages on a roadway, comprising in combination, spaced, upright supports at one side of and adjacent to the roadway; vertically suspended kicker arms pivoted at their upper ends on said supports above the level of the carriages to swing in vertical planes across the roadway with their lower vends engaging a pole on thecarriagesto kick .the pole laterally and roll it' onto. skids; recipro.-

eating fluid motors for operating the kicker arms having cylinders pivotally connected at their rear ends to said supports and having, piston rods pivotally connected to said kicker arms; suspension springs supporting the forward endso-fi said cylinders to relieve the pistons of bending strains; 2.. common source of pressure. fluid connected to operate the motors simultaneously; and a single REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: v

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 11591143 Wilson Feb. 21, 1928 1,712,576 McArthur et a1. May 14, 1929 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date Swedenv Dec. 9,19% 

